Top Gear Live to replace MPH

The MPH brand and event is being superseded by an all-new Top Gear Live show in London and Birmingham.

The Top Gear Live theatre show has been running alongside the MPH exhibition at Earls Court and The NEC for several years as part of a joint venture between Brand Events and Clarion Events.

The new format launching from 2011 will see MPH dropped in favour of a comprehensive Top Gear Live, and Earls Court switched for Excel London.

Brand Events commercial director James Cooke-Priest told EN the decision to relocate to Excel and rebrand solely as Top Gear Live was prompted by the success of the Top Gear brand, as well as its decision to overhaul and significantly expand feature content. Clarion will remain involved with the project as a joint venture partner.

“We are launching an all-new event incorporating a host of new Top Gear-related activities,” Cooke-Priest said. The show’s centrepiece will be a purpose-built indoor track where attendees can watch time trials in all categories of motor vehicles, presenter challenges and head-to-head competitions.

Excel was chosen for its fit-for purpose space and the need to double the size of the new Top Gear Live show, Cooke-Priest said.

“We had to weigh up the pros and cons. We’ve been at Earls Court for a number of years and as this is a new launch and a new event, we had to look at the most suitable space for it,” Cooke-Priest continued. “You have to be pragmatic about it and realise that some people will not go to the new location. On the flip side, the people we might lose in West London we will gain in the East.”

The all-new Top Gear Live will run from 11 to 13 November at The NEC and from 24 to 27 November at Excel.

Check out EN’s full report on Top Gear Live in our new-look July edition, hitting desks on 1 July.

Top Gear Live to replace MPH was last modified: August 4th, 2017 by EN